Metallic storage-bin.



1. E. ALLSTEADT. METALLIC` STORAGE BIN. APPLICATION FILED IAN. 28,11914.

mu Nonms Psrms m. Pnomumo. msmwcmn. a, c.

Patented July 18, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

1. E. AL1s1EAD1. METALLIC STORAGE B| N. APPLICATION FILED IAN. 28. 1914-Patented July 18, 1916.

-2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

:fran ,engins ravin l onnifon.

JOHN E.. ALLSTEAPT, QFHASTINGsNERASKA,

Speicatoii of Letters Patent.

METALLlC STOItAGE-BIN.

applicati@ flied January 2s, i914. seria'i Np. 814,959.

To all ila/tom tmc/y concern Y Be it known that I JOHN E. ALLsTEADT v 3l 3 c itizenfof the United `States, residing at y Hastings in thecoiiiity of Adams and State of-Nebraska, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Vh etallic Storage- Y Bins, of which thefollowing is ayspecication. vMy,invention vrelates to metallicstructiires, and

bins.

provide a storagebin, particularly .adapted to contain grain, of-siichconstruction that the grain maybe kept in perfect condition' andpi'otected from the inroads ofniice and rats and constantly ventilatedso ztliatany inoistureinthe grain maybe dissipated and the grainthuskept from rotting.

A further object ofthe invention is to so construct the storagebl thatit may be formed in readily transportable sectionsV easily connected toeach other and easily y set up atany desired location and without theVnecessity of the services of an expert metal-worker.

A further object of the invention 4isto forintlie roof and floor ofthemetallic storage bins 4in sections attachableto eachother and in thisconnection provide means'for fii'inlyrsupporting the roof sections inengagement with Veach other andV upon the sides of the bin.

A further object of theinvention isto so construct the roof sectionsthat they shall have interlocking water-proof engagementV with eachother and thatjthey inayliouse the rafters or like striictnral-eleinen'ts-zwhich support `the roof.

ticularly strong and rigid :means .for connecting ,these rafters-to'each other Vand to the roof sections.

ventilating fluepassing vei'ticallyrthrongh the bin so arranged as 1tocause an upward draft of air at all times through the flue and soyformed .as vto provide .for carrying away any moisture which may be inthe grain.

A further object isto provide abin with aniipper receivingfdoor, a lowerdoor-closed Opening from .which the grain .new beY shoveled, andaninteimediateopening likewise closed byacloerand provided .with

particularly to metallic storage The primary object of Vmy invention isto A still further object is to provide par.-

Still another object is the provision of a'l grain spout so thattliegreater'portion of the grain contained within the bin may be readilydischarged into wagons.

v Patented Jnly 181916.V

, A further. object is to soconstruct the bin anddoors that when'thedoor is closed any entrance by mice or rats will be .pref

vented and the chiite will. be supported v .againstaccidental.dislodgment by animals.

Other objects will appear in thecourse of the following description. .rMy inventionis illustrated in the accom'- panyiiig drawings, whereing-Figure lis a vertical. Central section 'of a Abin constructed inaccordancewith' my in?,

vention. Figp is a perspective looking toward the insideof thetop ofthebin detached.- Fig.3 is a detail cross sectional View across the Sliding`.door .it the top of the bin. Fig. l is 1an enlarged fragmentarysectional `view on theline 13,- 13 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentarysection on the: line 14e-'14 of Fig. 1. f Fig. 6isa verticalv secr tion on the s ,a'me line as `Fig. 5 but showing amodified form-.0f ioiilt- Y Cor-responding and likejoarts are referredto in the following description and indicated L in all the views of theVaccompanying drawings by thesa-me referencecliaracters.

Referring to Figs; y1 and2 it kv villbe seen that the bin iscircularincross-'section and comprises upstanding sfide walls, a conical roof,made in sections, and a bottom made in sections. The sides ofthe bin'are formedof sheets of `metal 2, the s he'etsfbeing fastened to lap`over the upper edgeoifthe next adj acentseetion 2. As shown, the bin isconstructed of three tiers of 4metallic sections, tliefiipper 4tierbeing ,designated U2?, the next tier belQW .being designated@ and thethird or lowestte being' designate/'C192 It willfof course, bennderstood that any ninnber ofsections orlteis may be i ised, dependingupon ,the heghtef 'the structure- Theeveriappins margine ef Qnesetfinor' eislieldto Athe upper niarginQ thenext .section being designated 7.

adjacent section by means of bolts or rivets 5, disposed at suitableintervals and for the purpose of supporting one tier upon another untilthe sections have been riveted or bolted to each other bythe bolts 5, Iprovide upon the inside face of the upper section at the lower marginthereof the downwardly projecting cleats 5a which are preferably made ofmetal. These cleats extend downward below the lower edge of' the uppersection and are slightly curved to conform to the bead 3 of the uppersection and then extend downward and outward. lll/*hen an upper sectionis placed upon the lower sections these cleats act to support thesuperjacent section While the rivets or bolts are being put in place.This permits one man to place the sectionsone upon another and to rivetor bolt them together without the necessity of' having the sheetsotherwise supported while the rivets or bolts are being put in place.This construction adds very much to the ease with which the parts may beassembled. The uppermost tier of sections designated 2, is braced, andheld rigidly to a circular fo in by a sectional angle iron, the verticaflange of each angle iron extending downward on the inside of the sheetmetal side section and horizontal flange' extending outward over the topedge of the section. There may be as many sections of the angle-iron 6as required, but preferably there are two, each semi-circular in formand of such site that the adjacent extremities of the angle ironsoverlap so that the angle'irons may be bolted or riveted to each otheras well as to the upper margin of the wall of the bin. The bottom of thebin is made in a plurality vof sections, preferably two sections, eachof these., sections being segmental in form, each Each section of thefloor or bottom may be made of as many pieces or sheets of metal as maybe necessary, the sheets being riveted to each other and preferablyformed with interlocking joints as at S. The outer margin of eachsection 7 is reinforced by a seinicircular angle iron section designated9 which is riveted or bolted to the metal of the section 7- and theinner or diametrical margins of each section 7 are reinforced 'by meansof ane'le irons l0 riveted or bolted to the sections. rlhe angle irons 9have a horizontal flange and a downwardly extending vertical flange andthe angle irons l0 have their vertical flanges extending upward. Whenthe sections of the bottom or floor are Vplaced together the verticalflanges of the angle irons l0 abut against each other and the sectionsare held to each other by means of bolts passing through these verti.

cal flanges. A packing may be disposed between these vertical flanges,if desired. These angle irons 10 therefore not only act to lrevidemeans'whereby the two sections of a plurality of segmental sections, thesections being detachably connected or jointed lto each other. Eachsection may be formed of a. plurality of plates or sheets of sheet metalriveted or jointed to each other. rlhe sections of the roof aredesignated ll and as illustrated are four in number, though of course,more or less of the sections may be used. Each section is formed on oneside edge with an upwardl i projecting flange l2 and upon the opposieside edge with upwardly,extending bead 13 approximate y rectangular incross-section, the upwardly extending flange l2 of one section beingadapted to hook under the downwardly extending margin le of this bead,as illustrated clearly in Fig. i. rllhe sections are further connectedto each other by means of latching members l5 disposed on one sectionadjacent the joint thereof, extending across said joint and engagingbeneath straps 1G riveted to the adjacent margin of the section, themiddle of the strap i6 being open so as to permit the insertion of theend of the latching member beneath the strap 1G. The extremity of thelatching member l5 is then turned over as at 17 upon the strap 16, thusholding one section firmlj-,f l

locked to the next adjacent sectionand preventing any disengagement ofthe joint between the sections. Art the center of the roof the sections`l1 are cut-away to provide an opening 18 for the Ventilating flue.Extending radially from this central opening are a plurality of rafters19, each rafter, as shown. in Fig. l, being angular in cross section.These rafters may be made of relatively heavy sheet inetal or ofrelatively heavy angle iron. Each rafterhas an upwardly projectingflange and a horizontally projecting flange. VEach rafter is disposed inthe joint between two adjacent sections ll,

the horizontal flange of the rafter being disposed beneath the margin ofthe section ll whichis providedY with the upwardly extending flange l2,while the vertical flange 20 of the rafter is disposed between theflange l2 and the side of the bead 13, as shown clearly in Fig. il. rlheinner end of each rafter is bolted or otherwise attached to a cap-plate21, as shown clearly in l? ig. 2, bolts 22 passing through thehorizontal flanges of the rafters and through said capplate.V Thecap-plate is square in plan and concavo convex and is formed with acentral opening 23. The cap-plate is so arranged that the corners of theplate are in line with the rafters so that the bolts 22 will (ffl passthrough vrelatively wide portions of Furthermore by making vthe platemany.- sided Vand so arranging the rafters with relation to the platethat the rafters' are disposed at the projecting corners of the plate,

a larger bearing will be secured for the rafters on the plate than ifthe plate were round or circular. Each raftei adjacent its cuter end isformed with a downwardly projecting perforated ear 24, preferably formedby slitting the rafter at its outer end at the junction of the verticalflange with the horizontal flange and bending down the extremity of thehorizontal flange. rlhe latches 15, previously referred to, each passbeneath ythe horizontal flange of .the corresponding rafter,= as shownclearly in Fig. 2, thus not only locking the roof sections to each otherat the joints but locking the rafters and roof sectionstogether. It willbe seen lthat this construction provides for a very easy assembling ofthe rafters with the roof sections and an easy means of fastening theroof sections together to form a complete roof. Furthermore thisarrangement permits the ready removal ofthe roof sections from therafters-where vrepairs or replacement are required. Each Vroof sectionis provided at one or more points with downwardly extending ears 25,these ears being vertically slotted as at 26 and these ears 25 with thedownwardly turned ears 24 on the rafters are adapted to be bolted vorotherwise secured to the reinforcing angleiron G at the top of the sidewall of the bin, as shown clearly in Fig. 1. Preferably, this engagementof the lugs 24 and-26 to the angle iron will be secured by mea-ns ofbolts passing through the angle iron and through; the perforations orslots in the ears 24ror 25.

metal plates forming the roof sections.

One of the roof sections is preferably provided with an opening closedby a sliding door 27, this opening being used for the purpose of fillingthe bin. To this-end one of the sections is cut away to form the doortheguides thus formed.` lThis door is ,pro- -vided with upwardly'projectingflanges 31 which engage beneath the overturned beads 28 and the sidemargins of the door rest upon the strips 29. It willthus be seen that Byslotting the `ears V25 provision is made for `any buckling or distortionof the| f a perfectly weather proof joint is provided between thereofsection and the sliding door and that whenthe door'is closed it isentirely protected from the -entrance of water around the edges Yof thedoor, the upper end `of-thedoor --projecting into the space-between'thestrip 30 and thesuperposedlmargin yof the door opening. T he doormay be provided with any suitable handle whereby it may bei opened andwith any suitable locking means. Y

Inorder tof brace the structure against overturning byy high windslconnect thereto the guy-wires 32, as shown in Fig. 2. Pref- I erably,these guy-wires are attached to therafters 19 and to this end the outeren'ds of the rafters areprovided with pivoted loops 33, as showninf-Fig. 2 to which the inner ends of the guy-wires are connected.Thesel loops beingpivoted may b e shifted into anyy desired angularrelation to the rafters, thusV permitting the guy-wires l to take anydesired angular relation. and be attached atany suitable distance fromthe bin, as circum-V stances may require. It is to benoted that theseloops 33 are disposed exteriorly of the lugs 24 and 25 so that the loopswill be exterior to the side wall of the bin. It willv also be notedfrom Fig. l that the onterinargin of theroof projects a considerabledistance beyond the side walls, thus preventing lthe entrance of rain.The lugs 24L'and 25V support` the roof sections and permit the roofsections to be so adjusted that a ventilating space may be left betweenthe angle Viron 6 and the roof for the free admission of air into theupper portion of thebin.

In order to provide for a proper ventilation of grain contained withinthe binl so that any moisture in the grain may be carried off, I providethe Ventilating iue designated 35, as shown inFig.v 1. At its upper endthe flue projects through the opening 23y in the plate 21 and' throughthe open- ,ing 18 in the roof,thisv openingl being cen- Atral. Asillustrated in Fig. 1, an open ended l thimble 37 is riveted orotherwise attached to the sheet metal formingthe floor sections 7, thisvthimble having a1 flange to permit ofv this attachment. A sleeve 36extends partly into this thimble and partly into the lower end of thelow-er section of the' flue and holds the lower end of the flue inregistry Vwith the opening and securely but detachably connected to thethimble 37 ,l do not wish to be limited to 'this manner of connectingthe lower end of the flue 35`to the floor Vor bottom section 7 asitgwill be obvious that Vother means might be arranged for supportinglthe lower end of the flue and making a close jointbetween'the Vfloorsection and the flue and preventing ingress of mice ory rats into thebin.V The upper end of the flue, as

before stated, passesup through the opening 18 and projects slightlyabove the roof. f The downward and outward a disk 41, and supportedabove this disk 4-1 on brackets 43, and in spaced relation thereto istheconical cap 42. lt will be seen that the angle of the disk 41 is moreacute'tlian the angle of the roof and hence that the margin of the disk41 will rest on and fit snugly against the roof' and thus prevent theentrance of rain into the openingl 18. The Ventilating flue 35 isconstructed of sheet metal and may bein one piece or inV sections,`asdesired. It is provided along its length with openings permitting theoutward passage of `air but so arranged as to prevent the passage ofgrain.

ln order to connect the side wall of the bin to the bottom thereof, thelower margin of the lowest tier l2C of the metallic sections formingAthe wall is bent underneath the vertical flange of the angle-iron 9andthen bent upward inside this flange as at 52. By

this construction it will be seen that the lower edgel of the side walllis caused to overlap the downwardly turned margin 7u of the metalforming the floor section 7, thus entirely closing the oint between themeta-l of the floor section and the angle iron and forming a joint whichwill not permit the entrance of insects or small animals of any kind. Ofcourse, the inwardly turned lower margin of the side wall may be rivetedor bolted to the vertical flange or angle iron 9, but I have not foundthat this is necessary in practice.

l/Vhilc the door 27 is Yfor the purpose ofl loading the bin orpermitting access'to the upper portion thereof l also provide a loadingdoor opening 53, as shown in Fig. 1. The margin of this door opening isstrengthened by angle irons 54 having outwardly extending flangesforming the door, frame. The outwardly extending flanges of the upperand lower angle irons 54a are laterally extended at one side to form asupport for the pivots upon which the door 55 is hung. rlhis door 55 maybe ma de of sheet metal provided at its margins with inwardly turnedflanges 5G which are so disposed that when the door is closed thekflanges will fit over and have snugv engagement with the outwardlyprojecting flanges. of the angle irons 54 and 54u. I rlhe upper andlower flanges 56 are extended beyond the inside margin of the door forengagement with the ears formed bythe extensions of the flanges 54a andare pivoted to these extensions kby means of bolts 57 or other suitablepintles. The door is provided with any suitable hasp 58 engaging withthe keeper 59 on the body of the bin and permitting the door t0 belocked when closed. Interiorly of the door opening 53 there isattachedto the wall of the bin the plate GOhaving inwardly inclined Sideedges riveted to the wall of the bin, this plate being provided with thecen- 70 tral opening 60@L closed by'a. sliding'door G0", and having anintegral grain cap G1, as shown in Fig. 1. Below the opening 53 the sidewall of the bin is formed with a discharge opening closedrby a door 62.The door 'opening is relatively long and as illustrated, extends acrossthe'two tiers 2b and 2U, the lower portion of the door opening beingdisposed only about two inches above the floor section 7. This dooropening is framed on the exterior by angle irons G3 and G4 which areriveted to the sheet metal forming the wall of the bin, these angleirons having outwardly projecting flanges. The angle irons 64 areextended laterally at one end to form ears 65., rlhedoor 62 is alsoframed by: outwardly projecting fianges GG and G7 so'fdisposed that whenthe door is closed the flanges will have snug engagement with theoutwardly projecting flanges of the angle irons G3 and 64 and the angleirons @Bare extended laterally to form ears 68 through which pintlebolts 69 pass. The door is provided with a hasp 70 adapted to engagewith the keeper 7l whereby the door may be locked to its closedposition. Above the door frame is a weather cap 72 which projects outfar enough to extend entirely beyond the upper angle iron 64and beyondthe door when the door is closed, thus preventing rain from drippingdown upon the door and possibly entering the bin in this manner.

In orderv to providey for the removal of grain from-the bin by means ofa spout so that when sufi'icient grain is in the bin the grain may beconducted to a wagon and allowed to run by gravity thereinto,'l mountupon the inside face of the bin the casing 73, as illustrated in Fie'.4. vThis casing consists of a sheet of metal 74 extending approximatelyparallel to the wall of the bin, the side margins of the sheet beinginwardly bentas at 75 and then laterally bent as at 7G and riveted tothe wall 2 by rivets 77. rlhe sheet metal 74 forming the back of thecasing 73 is formed with a central opening 7 8 and on each side of thisopening there are provided guides 81 'between which slides a door 82having a handle 83 whereby it may be readily raised and lowered. Thisdoor 82 constitutes a cut-oli" which permits a regulated quantity ofgrain to pass through the opening 78.y The lower edge of this cut-offwhen the cut-oftn is closed, abuts against a strip 85 (see Fig. 1) whichextends across the outer face of the plate 74 at the bottom j of thedoor opening.A This strip 85 is out- Awardly flared along its upper edgeso as to ginof the strip andthe 74, andthe lower margin of the strip isoutwardly bent to extend beneath a pivoted chute or YVspout 86, when thelatter isopen. AThis chute or vspoutis also made of sheet metal and hasupwardly extending sides 87 formed Vattheir upper endswith'laterallydeflected ears 88,

these earsbeing pierced for the receptionofl the pivot pins 89.projecting inwardlyl `from brackets 90 riveted' Orotherwise securedtothe Vouter face ofthe lplate l74, as shown clearlyin Figs. 2 and 4. Thespace between Y the plate 7 4 and the outer wall ofthe -bin is Vofvsufficient depth to permit the spout to Vbe rest'against the inner faceof the bin wall.

The grain cap is preferably formed integral with the plate 74.

Immediately beneath the lower edge `of the plate 74 there is disposed adownwardly .and y inwardly extending plate 91 lwhich forms the top of apassage 92. This plate 91 is downwardly bent` at the sides as at 93 andrests upon the bottom or floor 7 of the bin. The' downwardly andinwardly in' clined top y91"of this`,passage 92 will cause.

any grain which may be resting `upon this top to slide off into thebottom of the bin,

'when the level of the grain in the'bin is V end of the spout reducedbelow the level of this 'wall 91. At the same time the passage 92permits the grain in the lower portion of the bintobe shoveled out anddischarged through this passage 92 after thelevel ofthe grain has fallenbelow the level of the discharge opening which is closed by the slidel82. While ordinarily, when the bin is full, grain will be dischargedthrough the opening closed by the slide 82 or cut-off, yet it is alwayspossible to enter the passage 92 and shovel the grain out from thebottomof the bm, as

the roof of this passage will support any grain and prevent the fillingup of this passage with grain. The strip 85 is for the purpose ofpreventing grain from leaking through the Vjoint between the upper rear86 or chute and the outer face of the plate 7 4 and thus preventing thelodgment of grain upon the outer projecting end of the roof 91 of thepassage.

In order to prevent the possible lodgment of grain in the joint betweenthe side wall of the bin and the floor in a position where it isdifficult to remove the grain I preferably attach to the inner face ofthe side wall a downwardly and .inwardly extending strip tends over thejoint `'between thebo'ttom or suitable foun'dation, j a'ndfthisVvfoundation,

may be so constructed asto permit the inl `gress of .air beneath thebinso that the ai-r Amay 'pass' up Athrough 'thecentral Ventilatingl flue.A 1I have @shown for lthis'purpose trans-vv verselyl extendingl wooden'l sills :9 5 upon which the bin' rests,I these sills; being in turnsupported uponsuitablelfoundation sills 96 or other suitable foundation,it beingdesigned to lift the structureV sufficiently from the ground topermit air to freely pass beneaththe structure. 1 v 7 While I have'shownin Fig. 41, a joint which I have found to Vbel particularly pracj ticalandsuflicient for the purpose `of con- `necting'one tier of the sectionsforming-"the side wall'to the `next tier, I do not wishjto y be limitedto this lasother formsof joint mightbe used.

yIn Fig. 6 I- show. another manner of connecting the adjacent sheets.lIn this figure the sheet2a is lapped over the sheet 2b and a batten-102is attached tothe sheet 2EL by arivet 103. This batten is 'formedVwith a folded margin 104 so astoformfthe batten of `three thicknessesat one end. Thel rivet 103 is passed through these three thicknesses.

VA socket isthus formed between thedownwardly extending portionof thehatten- 102 f and the adjacent face of the plate'2a within which theupper margin of the plate 2br is inserted. A bolt 106'is; passed throughthe plates 2a, 2P and the downwardly extending margin of the batten V1021. l

-v'Ihe angle irons 63 are perforated atintervals to permit a brace 103to be trans' versely i through which the spout 86 operates andpositioned f across. the `.opening thus hold the spout-in its raisedposition and Y prevent any unauthorized tampering with the cut-olf slide82.

As before remarked, this device is parn ticularly intended to be shippedin sections yand setup bythe purchaser at any desired location. It isfor this reason that the parts are made of sheet metal so as to belight, and so formed asto be conveniently connected to each other. Thebininay be set up in any suitable location and is readily transportableto some other location whenever desired. lVhen set up it is thoroughlystrong and is proof against the inroads of rats, mice and insects. Thegrain is ordinarily discharged either into the receiving door yin theroof of the bin or into the upper door 53.' The upper door 53 is foundparticularly convenient for spouting the grain into the bin directlyfrom a threshing machine. As the bin is filled, boards are disposedacross the .opening so as to prevent" pressure of the grain from forcingthe doors u of the bin.

When the bin is filled to capacity there will l/Vhen it is .desired toremove the contents.

of the bin the grain maybe discharged either throughthe openingcontrolled by the cut-olf S2 or through the passage 92, as desired.Irhave found the cut-offk and spout of great convenience in fillingwagons from the bin and also for using the grain for feeding purposes,it being possible to allow a very small quantity of grain to pass outfrom the bin and then to close the slide again. It will be noted thatwhen the door 62 is closed it is impossible fo-r stock to accidentallyopen the doorv and thus get at the grain within.

Vith reference to Fig. Vl it will be seen that the roof projectssufficiently beyond the side wall to prevent any possible entrance ofrain and yet that the vroof may be so ad,- justed as to permit air toenter beneath the eaves and passinto the bin, as desired. It willfurther be seen that no rain can enter around the Ventilating fluebecause of the close contact between the margin of the plate 41 and theroof sections. The same care has beentaken in forming the joints o-f theroof sections and the joints between the roof sections and the doors toprevent any possible entrance of moisture or prevent the entrance ofanimals, and it is also obvious that insects or small animals cannotenter the'bin through the Ventilating flue inasmuch as the lower end ofthis iue is raised above the ground and further, inasmuch as the Hue ismade of sheet metal.

My improved storage structure is simple, easily assembled, easilytransportable,

and has been found 'vertical flange in contact with'the depending rimthereof, said body having its lower edge portion bent inward beneath thesaid depending rim and the vertical fiange of the angle iron, thenceupward and against the inner face of the said vertical flange, with itsupper edge' in contact with the horizontalflange of the angle iron.

2. A sheet metal structure comprising a body, a bottomr having adepending rim arranged in contact with the lower edge portion of thebody, an angle iron disposed beneath the bottomv with its horizontalflange in contact with said rim thereof, said body having its lower edgeportion bent inward beneath the said depending rim and the verticalflange of the angle iron, thence upward and against the inner face ofthe said vertical flange, with its upper edge in contact with thekhorizontal iiange of the angle iron, and a metal strip attached at itsupper edge to the body and having its lower edge portion bent inward tooverhang the outer portion of the bottom and in contact therewith toconfine the same upon the horizontal flange of the angle iron.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

- JOHNv E. ALLsTEADT. [1.. 5.] l/Vitnesses:

J. H. UERLING,

JASON J. DUMAS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

